Hunters
The Hunters was a Codex-complaint Space Marine Chapter of Ultramarine descend who claimed the jungle/death world of Jewel as their homeworld before their exile from the realm of Ultramar. They would later settle on the Civilized World of Ionov. The Hunters were founded as part of the 10th Founding during the Nova Terra Interregnum. The Hunters were known for preferring the Stalker Pattern Boltgun over more common patterns of bolters used by the Adeptus Astartes as well as other long-range firearms. The Hunters' exile from Ultramar was due to an incident during the war against the Ur-Council of Nova Terra where the Hunters fired on Ultramarine allies to make sure the enemy wouldn't break through the line and hit the Imperials' supply lines. The Hunters would then be adopted by the Raven Guard who helped them get back on their feet. As such the Hunters have a strong friendship with the Raven Guard and their successors while maintaining a bitter rivalry with everyone of Ultramarine descend. The Hunters later joined the Conclave of Demondaus, a group of Space Marine Chapters working close together within the Ultima Segmentum. They settled on the world of Civil World of Ionov after they had cleaned it of remaining Necron forces within the structure that would later become their Fortress-Monastery, The Obsidian Citadel. The Slayers Space Marine Chapter is speculated to of Hunters descend though this is not entirely clear and both chapters won't confirm or deny this claim. What is known, is that the Hunters and Slayers work closely together whenever they take to the battlefield side by side. History Founding The Hunters were founded during the 10th Founding during the troubled times of the Nova Terra Interregnum. The Chapter was specifically founded to combat this massive insurrection that had consumed the entire Segmentum Pacificus. Its founding was not only a way to boost the number of successor chapters for the Ultramarines but also a way for their leadership to remove key individuals from the chapter that were more or less known for their tendencies to stray from the sacred Codex Astartes. These veterans were gathered up and given the "honor" of being the Founding Fathers of the Hunters Chapter. Of course, these Veterans knew what was happening on the Ultramarines' internal political floor and came to resent their former battle-brothers for dishonoring them in such a way by getting rid of them by doing this. Nonetheless, the newly founded chapter took up arms against the rebels in Segmentum Pacificus. The chapter, still wet behind its ears, was thrown into the thickest of battle. None of the other Ultramarine successors deployed with them wanted to support them due to being the black sheep of the family. Instead, the Chapter found friends among the Raven Guards, who saw the despair of the lone marines of the Hunters. A small detachment of Raven Guard marines decided to travel with the Hunters, teaching them the arts of stealth and infiltration. The Hunters quickly adopted some of the Raven Guards doctrines, slowly forging their own as the Ravens allowed the Hunters to stand on their own. Countless battles against the rebels later, the Hunters had found a great passion in long-ranged weaponry, adopting the Stalker-Pattern Bolter as their standard issued rifle. With a combination of deadly surprise attacks and long-range sniper fire, the Hunters quickly became a force of fear and dread for their enemies. Everything seemed to go well for this new chapter that had just settle itself into a comfortable position despite the hate from its parent and brother chapters but that wouldn't last long. Near the end of the Nova Terra Interregnum, the Hunters were tasked with protecting a great pass through an otherwise impassible mountain range along with a detachments from three other Ultramarine chapters. The Hunters were placed in the back to provided long-range fire support with their Whirlwinds. One day, a large force of Nova Terra space marines and guardsmen assaulted the pass. The Hunters prepared to lay down a deadly barrage of missiles to bring the Emperor's wrath to the enemy but the other chapters denied the order, wanting all the glory for themselves and leave none for the Hunters. After hours of battle in the pass it, however, became clear to the Hunter Captain commanding the Whirlwinds that the loyalists were rapidly losing. The captain requested the other chapters fall back while they provided covering fire but again they were denied. Feeling greatly angered at how incompetent the other chapters' commanders were acting, the Hunter Captain ordered his Whirlwinds to bombard the pass, cleansing it of both enemies and allies alike. The barrages rained down over the pass, crippling the enemies so bad that they had to retreat and killing well over 180 allied marines. Those few loyalist marines that survived were rescued by the Hunters and handed over to each of their chapters which would have serve consequences later. This incident would later be speculated upon by later generations of Hunters if it would have been better to just have killed the wounded off and then lie about how they died. Exile from Ultramar After the Nova Terra Interregnum, the Hunters returned home to Ultramar with many stories of heroic deeds and great bounties of glory achieved on the fields of battle. Their homecoming, however, was not as welcoming as they had hoped. High-ranking members from the Ultramarines and their 2nd and 3rd founding successors soon arrived at Jewel and demanded to talk with the Hunters' Chapter Master along with the rest of his staff and all of the captains. Whatever happened within the Chapter Master's throne room is unknown but what is known is that the meeting didn't go well and that it had come to blows between the Hunters and their guests. The emissaries left in anger, spitting curses at every Hunter they met on their way out of the fortress-monastery. Later the same night, after the chapter had held its evening prayer led by the chapter's Chaplains, the Chapter Master stepped in front of everyone. He told them that the Hunters were to be exiled from Ultramar and if they didn't submit to these demands the Ultramarines and their successors would force them out with force if it came down to it. Many hunters voiced their anger at the news and encouraged the rest of the chapter to stand and fight for their home. The Chapter Master, however, told them that the Hunters would meet these demands as too much Imperial blood had already been spilled during the Nova Terra Interregnum and that the Chapter still needed to rebuilt its strength after the many battles. Most were calmed by the Chapter Master's words and saw the logic in them while others still thought that they should stand and fight. The chapter prepared to leave and even sent out a final round of recruiters to recruit the last worthy warrior on the planet. Having gathered the last batch of recruits before the Hunters boarded their ships and left their home behind. For the next few centuries, the Chapter was Fleet-based until one day when the Chapter received reports of an uncovered Necron structure on the Imperial Civilised World of Ionov. The chapter responded to the call and arrived above Ionov in full force. The Chapter Master at the time quickly took a liking to the Necron structure and send word to Holy Terra to request that Ionov would become the Hunters' new homeworld. While he and the entire Hunters Chapter fought the malfunctioning Necrons in the huge fortress, word arrived that the Hunters' request had been met and they were allowed to claim the world as their own. The Hunter's cleared the Necron structure and claimed it as their new Fortress-Monastery after Tech-priests from Mars had analyzed whatever they thought they could find within the many hallways and chambers of the structure. The Hunters named their new Fortress-Monastery the Obsidian Citadel and quickly began setting up their new home within it. While they couldn't combine the Necron design with Imperial, they instead made sure to hollow out walls to accommodate doors and electrical systems as well as adding additional rooms to house the Fortress' Plasma Fusion Power Plant to power the fortress. All foul xenos symbols were covered up with banners, trophies and other furniture. After almost two centuries of tireless work, the Obsidian Citadel was complete. Gene-Seed The Hunters Gene-Seed comes from the Ultramarines and as such are extremely pure. While the Hunters resent their parent chapter, they do treasure the Gene-Seed they were given and are also very proud of it. Chapter Flaws Hailing from the Ultramarines, the Gene-seed is very pure with only minor mutations that are quickly removed by the chapters Apothecaries. Homeworld Ionov is a temperate civilized world located in the Ultima Segmentum. It's known for its huge plains and high mountains that are covered in wild forests. While the plains are relatively safe and peaceful, the mountains are entirely other thing altogether. The mountains of Ionov are home to many wild and bloodthirsty beasts, some even speculated to have been touched by the chaotic powers of the warp long ago. Only a few settlements are located at the foot of these mountains as the beasts tend to travel down the mountains for easier prey. The Hunters have made climbing and surviving in the mountains a part of their Rite of Initiation. Young Hunters usually travel up in these mountains to hone or maintain their skills as unparalleled hunters. Fortress-Monastery The Hunters Fortress-Monastery is called the Obsidian Citadel, courtesy of the black stone-like material that makes up Necron structures. The Obsidian Citadel is a pyramid-styled Necron structure that located in the Val Tartran Dreadlands on Ionov. The structure itself is mostly buried underground, only 25 % of the citadel being above the surface, even if its above surface area measure almost the same as a small hive city. Large catacombs and hallways stretch downwards like roots of a tree. Many of these hallways and catacombs have yet to be fully explored, even after thousands of years, and it's not entirely uncommon for chapter serfs to simply disappear without a trace. The Hunters have made several additions to the immediate area surrounding the Obsidian Citadel. Large roads connect the Citadel to the rest of the planet's population centers and a massive moat with the bridges connecting the Citadel to the land around can be retracted to better hold off sieges. Large ground-based antennas are spread throughout the area around the moat. These antennas help further enhance the Citadel's Astropath Choir to send and receive messages across the nearby sectors. It also helps the Astropaths in service of the Hunters to better discover and unlock hidden and encrypted psychic messages. Chapter Organisation The Hunters adhere mostly to the Codex Astartes, even after their exile from Ultramar. Companies Chapter fleet Battle Barges *''Jewel's Avenger: Flagship of the Chapter's fleet and an old ship gifted by the Ultramarine chapter when the Hunters Chapter was founded. It was original named ''Sword of Bane but was renamed Jewel's Avenger after the Hunters' exile from Ultramar. *''Voidcaller: ''Voidcaller was a Battle Barge that the Chapter acquired from a rebellious chapter during the Nova Terra Interregnum. The ship was badly damaged in the war and first saw action with the Hunters a nearly 30 years after the end of the rebellion in Segmentum Pacificus. The Voidcaller participated in the Caduceus Crusade and was commanded by 2nd Company Captain Gumarnii Bantark. It was supported by the Strike Cruiser, In Arms Strength, and two frigates, Foeslayer and Determined Spirit. Strike Cruisers *''In Arms Strength: Participated in the Caduceus Crusade and was able to deploy the 6th company to the ice world of Ningishzida during the First Battle of Caduceus. *Sword of the wind: Participated in the Del'Khan Campaign along with the ''Heart of the Predator. The Sword of the wind was boarded by Amadans during the later parts of the campaign but managed to eliminate any boarders at the cost of nearly 2/3 of its crew. It was aided by security forces from the Heart of the Predator during the boarding action. *''Heart of the Predator: Participated in the Del'Khan Campaign along with the ''Sword of the wind It delivered the 2nd company to the surface by drop pods. It would later send most of its security forces to aid the Sword of the wind in repeling Amadan boarders that had appeared on the ship. Escorts Nova-class Frigates *''Foeslayer: Participated in the Caduceus Crusade and the Battle of Ningishzida. It served as bait for the ice planet's surface-to-space anti-ship canons to draw attention away from the ''Voidcaller and the In Arms Strength so that they could deploy their forces to the ground. The Foeslayer managed to take out one anti-ship battery with a well placed lance strike but was eventually forced to retreat when it sustained damage from the large planetary canons. It would remain by the Voidcaller's side for the duration of the battle of Ningishzida where it would undergo emergency repairs with the help from the Voidcaller's own crew. Gladius-class Frigates *''Determined Spirit: Hunter-class Destroyers Chapter Recruitment Combat Doctrine Deathwatch service Notable Campaigns *'Siege of Gelrak (Unknown date.35M)' - First recorded battle that the Hunters partook in. They fought alongside the Ultramarines and their successor chapters forces. The Siege of Gelrak was considered very one-side due to the Hunters' effort in assassinating key military and political targets on the planet. *'Suppression of Eventide (Unknown date.35M)' - The Suppression of Enventide took place on the planet of Eventide, located near the border between the Segmentum Pacificus and Solar. It served as an important logistical hub for the Imperium's continued war effort in the nearby sectors against the Ur-Council. The planet had long been firmly under Imperial rule but the sudden death of the planet's entire ruling family saw a new power take control of Eventide. The new ruler saw fit to defect to the Ur-Council and started his rebellion by slaughtering all Arbiters on the planet. To quickly suppress this dangerous rebellion, the Hunters Chapter was sent. Three entire companies worth of Hunters were pulled from the frontlines and deployed to Eventide. Within six standard week, the planet's riots were suppressed and all key figures in the rebellion killed to the last. *'The Altoranian Purges (112.M37-130.M37)' - The ALtoranian Purges was a series of wars that saw the Imperium retake over two hundred worlds from the emerging xenos threat known as the Altoranian Ascendancy in the northwest regions of Segmentum Obscurus which had conquered and enslaved the imperial worlds in the aftermath of the Age of Apostasy. The Hunters dedicated their entire chapter to these purges from the start and played a key role in the Purges where they took out key Altoranian supply lines and facilities. At the final battle of the Altorian Purges, the battle of the Altoranians homeworld of Altora were the Hunters' 1st company responsible for assassinating the last of the Altoranians military and political leaders which left the the scattered Altoranian forces confused and in disarray. Altora was then colonized by the Imperium of Man and become a frequent recruiting world until the Hunters were rewarded Ionov as their Chapter Homeworld. *'Del'Khan Campaign (231.M42)' - Only a century after the end of the Indomitus Crusade was the planet of Del'Khan assaulted by a new Xenos threat. A Xenos species that became known as the Amadan had arrived and was quickly spreading across the planet and growing more powerful as time went on. When it became clear that the local PDF couldn't deal with the Amadans, was a Liberation Fleet formed and deployed to Del'Khan. The Amadans still proved too big a problem for even the Imperial Guard to handle on its own and so forces from different Adeptus Astartes chapters were called upon. The Hunters dedicated their entire 2nd and 5th companies to the battle, led by Captain Gumarnii Bantark of the 2nd company. The Del'Khan Campaign was eventually won with the death of the Amadans Supreme Core at the hands of a Deathwatch kill-team. The Hunters stayed on Del'Khan for another four months to hunt down and exterminate the remaining Amadans across the planet. *'Amadan Wars (232.M42)''' - Immediately after the Del'Khan Campaign was the Amadan Wars were declared to eradicate the Amadan menace from the face of the Galaxy. A large crusader fleet was gathered above Del'Khan and forces from across multiple sectors were pulled into the crusading armies. The Hunters' 2nd and 5th companies would join the Crusade after they had purged the rest of the scattered Amadans on Del'Khan. In the meantime, the entire 3rd Company was also pulled into the crusade and partook in the wars from the start. Category:Space Marine Chapters Category:Ultramarines Successors